DOUBT ON HEROIN CLINIC AS SOLUTION

THE success of naltrexone in treating heroin addiction has been oversold
because it worked for only a small number of users, a visiting addiction
expert said yesterday.

James Bell, director of Sydney's Langton Centre, was in Perth to address a
joint Health Department and WA Drug Abuse Strategy Office alcohol and drug
conference.

Dr Bell said there had been a significant decline in the use of naltrexone
in the eastern States. The treatment had a high attrition rate and was
appropriate for less than 10 per cent of patients.

Naltrexone should be aimed at stable, better adjusted people who had a
realistic chance of becoming abstinent.

"People are frightened by drug dependence; they keep hoping there is a
miracle cure," Dr Bell said.

"There clearly isn't and naltrexone has been oversold." It was important to
wind back the unrealistic expectations, he said.

"People believe by an effort of will or publicity they will get people to
believe it works," he said.

"It just isn't true, it's a little bit of a fraud that's being perpetrated."

Dr Bell said he had some concerns about George O'Neil's naltrexone clinic.

"I have a very strong feeling that what we should be moving towards in drug
abuse treatment is professionalism, competent people who are well informed.

"The relatively untrained peer support that Dr O'Neil runs, I think,
provides a risky strategy because it's so singularly focused on that one
modality of treatment."

Comprehensive clinics where patients were given a proper assessment, good
counselling and treatment options, were needed, he said.

Health Minister John Day said yesterday that funding for Dr O'Neil's clinic
from a $1 million trust Premier Richard Court announced more than six weeks
ago should be available by the end of the day.

He said naltrexone appeared to be an appropriate treatment for some heroin
addicts, but not all.

The Subiaco clinic was forced to close last week after donations - which
kept it operating - dried up after Mr Court's
announcement.

Dr O'Neil is overseas. The West Australian was unable to contact the
clinic's manager.